Virtual services by foreign law firms not taxable under India–Singapore DTAA: Delhi High Court rules in favour of Clifford Chance

Published on : 05 Dec 2025, 11:24 am 3 min read

The Delhi High Court has held that virtual services rendered by a foreign law firm or other establishment not having any physical presence in India cannot be taxed under the India–Singapore Double Taxation Avoidance Agreement (DTAA) [Commissioner of Income Tax, International Taxation v Clifford Chance Pte Ltd] .

A Division Bench of Justices V Kameswar Rao and Vinod Kumar noted that the concept of a “virtual service permanent establishment (PE)” does not exist under the DTAA.

Hence, it rejected the Income Tax Department’s move to tax Clifford Chance Private Limited, one of the largest international law firms, on services rendered remotely from Singapore.

The Court said that it cannot read into treaties concepts not expressl